The organic food debate seems to be largely the whim of the wealthy households who have the disposable income to browse far from home choose what they purchase [read increased carbon emissions].The claimed increased nutrition of organic foods is not readily quantifiable. My experience of so called organic products is that they are expensive and the price differential does not indicate a corresponding increase in quality over the main supermarket or fresh produce market chains. Furthermore purchasing fresh food in South Africa in remote areas directly off the land does not show a corresonding increase in freshness or quality and the general standard of fresh food purchased away from the big fresh produce markets or supermarket chains shows poor consistency, bad hygiene and much spoiled produce. I would expect this to be the case elsewhere in the world as the quality control systems would be inconsistent. The moral of the story is if you want good food at good value --buy from the established fresh produce markets or from vendors who buy their bulk there regularly or buy from the established supermarket chains. I can't see this trend changing in the future.

It must have been the lull in news after the holiday season in Europe that caused the recent excessive focus on the downside of everything organic and fair in the food industry.
Now it seems to be turning into a major public spat between big business and the tree huggers.
At the heart of the arguments is the realization that much of what has been common wisdom about organic farming, small ...